"It's A Once In A Lifetime Sort Of Thing So You've Gotta Do That."

Sitting on an outdoor table at a Brunswick West cafe, Alex Lahey carefully pours tea from teapot into cup. When asked whether anything surprising has come up in her musical career to date, she ponders, "I was thinking this on tour, like, at the start of the year when we were touring overseas I was like, 'This could be such an isolating experience.' And it's so important that I am conscious of that to make sure that I'm not isolated, because I wouldn't deal well with that, but it's kind of ironically isolating. I guess you never know these things until you do it, but I think it's important to be upfront about the things that can be really hard about it and by not denying it you're able to tackle it in the way that works best for you [to stay] happy.

"And you can see how people burn out, like, you can see how you can get sucked into a lot of shit and you can see what can go wrong, and why people maybe actually experience success and they're like, 'Actually, this isn't for me' - I can totally understand why. But for someone like me who wants to keep doing this for the rest of my life, I owe it to myself to be really mindful and stuff."

Lahey admits, "It's definitely been an adjustment, like, having to think about my health and, you know, really looking after myself and that kinda thing, but, I mean, it's good because it probably makes for a better lifestyle all up. But, yeah, it's kind of fine 'cause as much as you're like, 'Oooooh, I'm surrounded by booze and I shouldn't be drinking!' Like, there'll be booze at the next gig, you know? I can tap in then, like, I owe it to myself to sort of, you know, have a bit of a break or whatever.

"You pick your nights," she points out. "That's what I find, like, even my band and I the other day were like, 'We should get the tour poster out and actually mark our nights that we can have a really good time.'" Given that the Sydney show on Lahey's I Love You Like A Brother launch tour falls on the day of the album's release, this date has already been marked out as a party night. "It's a once in a lifetime sort of thing so you've gotta do that," Lahey stresses.

Paul Kelly's much-loved song From Little Things Big Things Grow rings out over the cafe sound system and our discussion turns to the myth of overnight success. "I think that any one of those narratives that is like, you know, 'He or she just came outta nowhere,' is, like, total bullshit," Lahey opines. "It's like, 'Alright, well, what about the piano lessons when they were four years old and, you know, all that kinda stuff.' It's a life's work and it's a lifestyle as well. And I think that, for me, this project came after a long string of shit songs, and playing in other bands, and playing other instruments and, you know, all the other personal things that happen in your life that shape what you do. So, yeah! I've been playing music my whole life and was in another band in Melbourne called Animaux for years, and was playing in big bands and stuff through high school and, like, really hardcore doing the jazz thing at uni for a little bit and that kinda stuff."

Although Lahey acknowledges, "I was always passionate about music, I knew that was always what I wanted to do," she says everything didn't immediately fall into place as some people may believe. "It wasn't me picking up an instrument and then all of a sudden having a record out... How it all came together - it was a very happy accident.

"It's also a credit to the last band that I was in, because it did present me with the opportunity to start that project, and I think the fact that that band was a very grassroots-based project has just continued through in this [solo outing] as well.

"My solo project opened for my band at one point, which was a lot of singing for me that night," she laughs. "There was definitely overlap and that band never broke up; it was more that I just got really busy and no one else kind of was facilitating anything in that band and it kinda, like, just fizzled out."

Going on to explain that her success as a solo artist "all kinda came out of nowhere last year", Lahey reflects on the recruitment of her backing band. "Obviously this is a solo project, but I want the show to be a band show and I think a big part of that is - it's a delicate thing 'cause you have to communicate to these people. It's like, 'Ok, this is my project but I want you to..." Have some input? "Well, not really, like, they don't have any creative input - obviously they interpret the parts that they're given and, you know, you can give two people the same recipe and they come out with two different things, like, the same thing applies with music. But it's sort of more like, 'I want you to feel valued, because you are,' you know? And that's the thing I communicate to them I'm like, 'You are a valued member of this project and you play a role, and it would be different without you, and I want you to own that,' and that's the conversation. But it's obviously, like, a very delicate thing to discuss and that's why you have to be super-direct about it and, you know, luckily the people I work with understand. And it's a testament to their own integrity as individuals and I think also, like, we're all friends as well and I think it's testament to the value we place on our friendship with each other away from work."

When told this definitely comes across on stage, Lahey laughs, "We're not faking it; we actually do like each other. And especially with touring, like, I know that I'm the kind of person who needs that support and if I can integrate that into the people that come along with me then it serves me better in terms of my wellbeing and that sorta thing. But I know a lotta people prefer to be like, 'I just wanna pay the money, and get the service and, like, step back,' which is totally cool, and I can understand why that would suit some people better. But, for me, I kinda need, I guess, the intimacy... And it's definitely a very family-based sort of ethos."

Once Lahey started writing songs as a solo artist, she quickly discovered "that was where [her] passion truly lay". Lahey says she immediately became "really obsessed with writing songs and kind of finding [her] own voice". "I was learning more about myself doing that and cementing more of my own creative identity," Lahey tells.

The decision to quit her job to focus solely on her music wasn't an easy one for Lahey to make. "I've been a musician for 12 months, which is awesome," she shares of not having to work another job, "but not because I'm raking it in, it's more like, 'Ok I've contributed a significant amount of my savings to this and I still have a little bit left over, and I know that playing shows so much I can pay myself, you know, a hundred bucks a week or whatever to, like, stay afloat." And living at home has certainly helped Lahey's cause. "It's just too difficult otherwise, financially," she agrees, "and logistically the idea of, like, fucking getting on Fairy Floss Real Estate every month, 'I need to sub-lease my room,' you know, it's just, yeah, not for me. And, oh well, it's just an added stress in an already stressful kind of life. Also, it's just my mum and I, and she's really, really easy to live with, and her partner lives out in Kyneton and so she's there half the time."

Mrs Lahey actually stars in the music video for Every Day's The Weekend, the first taste from her daughter's soon-to-be-released debut album. On assembling the all-star cast for this video, Lahey says, "We wanted to get bosses. So we came up with the concept and the concept is: I keep getting fired from these jobs. And we were like, 'We need to find bosses,' and I was like, 'Alright, well an obvious one would be my mum, 'cause she actually is a boss,' and I was like, 'Let's get her in!' And she was happy to take a day off work. And then we were like, 'Ok what about - who do we know who's a bit, like, bigger and burly?' My tour manager Boo is a big sort of dude. And then we kinda wanted someone who maybe people might recognise... We were like, 'What about Barry Morgan?' 'Cause Jam [Nawaz, long-time collaborator] is very tied in with The Hills Are Alive crew and Barry MCs the backstage kind of stuff. And so we got Barry, yeah, and he came in and did that part."

Nawaz has been involved in "every single clip" Lahey has done, but another friend, Callum Preston, was enlisted to create some prop and set pieces for the Every Day's The Weekend film clip. "He built the pickle conveyor belt and stuff," Lahey enthuses, "he's a real genius... He did the Violent Soho skull, which is now iconic."

Of this video shoot, Lahey remembers, "That was really fun, yeah. We just bashed it out in two days and [it's] very DIY sorta thing. But I absolutely hate being in front of the camera so working with friends and doing goofy things makes it a lot easier. And also having, like, a really short filming period is a bonus, too. You'll find that a lotta my clips didn't take long to make because I just really don't enjoy being in front of the camera like that, like, even just the ...Taking Care... [I Haven't Been Taking Care Of Myself] clip - it took 14 hours and I'm like, 'At least we did it all at once so I didn't have to go back,' haha, you know?" Lahey adds the You Don't Think You Like People Like Me clip "took aaaages to make and it was, like, a never-again thing".          

We go on to discuss how the reasons why an artist or band doesn't last the distance can be misconstrued. "It's like, 'Oh, they just didn't have another good song,' or something," Lahey contributes. "I was like, 'Actually people opt out,' like, people definitely opt out. I remember having that revelation when we were overseas and I was like, 'I can understand why people opt out. I have no interest in opting out, but I can definitely see why this wouldn't be for everyone.'"

Now 25, Lahey reckons she's "grown up exponentially in the last two years", particularly through extensive touring. "It's like I suddenly became an adult or something, it's very odd."